Back online after lightning strike

Greetings everyone, we're back!!! First I'll give a general update and then will write about each event with photos later.
After a busy Aug and Sept and early Oct around here, and a very early morning thunderstorm 9/3 knocked out the satellite things are starting to get back to normal, well normal for Trinity.

Let me tell you a little of what has been going on. First in Aug some friends came and helped me with a work party and we worked on the Bowling Alley building, clearing out all of the trash, sweeping, stacking, and blowing, made it a destination for some of my friends. Jeff Burgess found a couple of Bowling balls and got 48 used pins from Eastmont Lanes since they had purchased new ones to replace them with. Also big thanks to Jeff B & Jill, Mark, Mike& Kerry D, Johnny cat, Jesse, Jordan, the Loomis' & Twitchell's my closest neighbors, Bill D, Fritz, Andrew and Laura D (first woman from WA to run the Iditarod) along with her team for a great weekend. If I left anyone out please forgive me in advance.
The bowling alley had looked the same since I got here 5 yrs ago filled with broken bales of straw, , and bales of woodchips from the Cascade Quest and had been that way for some time before that. All of the trash was removed and put into a burn pile that will be torched when there is over 1' of snow on ground this year. We also closed off all big openings in walls to keep the snow out this winter but doing so made it very dark in there. It only took about 3.5 hours of humping it on everyone's part to get it done and the first pins set and first strike was thrown in the first few throws, it was great.
We still need to build a ball return ramp and cage around the transformer for safety reasons, but it is usable. Everyone camped here for the weekend and we had lots of fun with a little work but got it DONE. Great Job and heartfelt Thanks to everyone that helped.

In Sept we had another workparty with the mushers & members of NWSDA came and helped work on the auto bridge railing that had fallen down after last years snow and worked on the valve house that was knocked down by snow load 2 yrs ago. Didn't get the last wall up or roof on it yet but got much further along than we had been. It was a long day but had a great time. Big thanks to Jay & Becky Justus, Dave Ford, Patti Kirkness, Kevin Casey, Don Duncan, Dan Bishop and Jasmine who will be coordinating this years Cascade Quest volunteers that are working @ Trinity. Great job and big thanks to all couldn't have gotten it done without ya'll.

This past weekend we had a Cub Scout pack that came here and installed a new Flag pole for a project. The weather was colder than expected so they also earned their winter camping badges for camping with overnight temps of 22 & 17. They did great. While they were working to finish the flag pole installation one of the boys saw smoke and even though they were young and learning, each grabbed a shovel and ran to the smoke finding burlap burning right behind my house, two of the leaders Will and Todd flipped it over taking the flames away from my back porch and all proceeded to put it out. I am very grateful for their quick action and fearlessness in saving Trinity, with the dry conditions we have been having all summer a true disaster was averted and my house was saved. Thanks to Will, Jamie& Devon Rau, Todd, Tristi & Noah Buchan, Scott Dunham, Denny Van Dorn, along with a couple of others that left before I could get their names. I'll be writing another post about this weekend and will get those names and put up photos of all if these events soon.

October 2-4 Laura D and team along with her parents Bill & Carole and sister Corrie along with her family and friends family, and other friends family we had 28 people and 22 dogs enjoying the cooler temps and Laura got in several training runs which she hasn't been able to do at home. It was more of a play time yet we still got things done also. Some of those here had only been hearing about Trinity for years yet never been able to be here, some were visiting from FL and had only been in WA for 2 days before coming to Trinity for the weekend so they started with Paradise and then returned to the dark side for the remainder of their visit. It's always a pleasure to see friends and have them visit, and 8 of them were kids under 8 who explored and played using their imagination and things found around here for all of their toys, not a video game or manufactured toy in the bunch and they had FUN.

Thanks again to everyone for all of your help and laughs you bring each time, got lots done, and another reason I love this place...
We found our Paradise, hope you find yours too...Peace